Is ‘X Factor’ On the Verge of Being Canceled?

It's November sweeps -- a critical period for networks -- and 'X Factor' is doing nothing to help its parent Fox achieve its goals. The show, in its third season, is dealing with abysmal ratings that have been declining ever since it premiered in the U.S. It appears to be running out of steam, begging the question: Is the show on the verge of being canceled?

According to a report, the network's primetime average last week was 3.8 million viewers, the smallest of any network this month. Fox also finished fourth in the key demo of young viewers. Since the show occupies three hours of the network's prime-time real estate slots, it is shouldering the blame for the overall poor showing.

This fall has been the worst for the show, which goes up against NBC's soaring 'The Voice' -- which grabbed 11 million viewers twice this week. 'X' is nowhere near those numbers, down 28 percent from last year. And last year's scores weren't good. The show grabbed 4.5 million viewers on Wednesday and 3.7 million on Thursday of last week. Even worse, a phone number glitch led to the show tossing the week's voting results out, meaning viewers had less of a reason to tune in the following night.

This could be the death knell for the show, which is huge in the U.K. and has produced bonafide stars like One Direction and Cher Lloyd (who didn't win their season) and Little Mix (who did). Industry insiders suggest that the show won't be renewed for a fourth season. With so many reality shows on TV, viewers just might be 'X'-hausted.